The Deobandi sect of Islam(of which osama is a follower) has issued a fatwa that muslims cant apply for insurance policy.It also says that interest earned from banks is un-islamic and is akin to gambling.However, investing in share market(which is much more risky) is not against Islam.I don't know in which world these people are living.After 1500 yrs since the beginning of banking they now say its unislamic.What a joke!m Read the full story.Atleast it would be a good laugh._________________The difference between insanity and genius is measured by success

Well, whether it is laughable depends upon one's religion or maybe even one's sect, if one is a Muslim. One paragraph from the article:

“'It is najayaz as per the Shariat,' said vice-president of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) Maulana Khaleed Rashid. It amounts to not believing in the supreme status of Allah, he said. But his colleague and noted Shia cleric Maulana Kalbe Sadiq disagreed: 'There is nothing wrong in taking an insurance policy. I can say it in the light of the laws followed by the Shia sect. But if another sect has views against it, one should respect that too.'”

As is often the case with religion, the believer thinks a particular idea in his / her own religion is perfectly logical, while someone else might think it is nonsense. Only Christians think that Jesus is the son of God (or is God himself); everyone else thinks that idea is silly. Everyone else thinks that Jesus is or might be a prophet, but that is all.

Only Muslims think that Muhammad is the greatest and only accurate prophet. Jews favor Moses.

Muslims scoff at the virgin birth of Jesus. Christians scoff at the magical horse that Muhammad rode up to heaven on to speak with God.

And so on and so on.

I think that everyone should respect everyone else's religious views.

I also think that everyone, and I mean every person on Earth, should quit ridiculing and hating and killing other people whose religious views are different from one's own.

In short: Mind your own business._________________You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

But, CP, when the members of one religion try to wipe the members of another religion off the map, and threaten to do the same to everyone in the world who does not believe as they do, it becomes our business.

I was not advocating surrendering to people who want to kill you because of your different religious views, nor failing to help allies who are attacked by such people. I was decrying the senseless hatred and murder committed in the name of religion as practiced on a daily basis by an awful lot of misguided zealots. It's no different in principle than killing people whose taste in music is different from yours._________________You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

hi tehcnomaniac,
i just read the message you have posted and want to clear out some doubts.iam not saying you that it is right as you have your beliefs but i thought it would be better to let you know the reason.
interest is already forbidden in our holy book. it is not something new. it says that it is forbidden as our teachings tell us that the money earned by ones own sweat is lawful. whereas in interest there is no hardwork done to acheive it and so that money is not worth it. i hope you dont laugh after knowing the reason.
however shares are not unlawful in islam unless it takes the shape of interest in someway or the other. example..if you buy a share and intentionally wait for the prices to rise in stockexchange then it is pretty much like interest because you would be getting money more than you actually invested.
p.s. Cp i just want to clarify that muslims donot scoff at jesus's virgin birth. infact we respect this fact because our god has asked us to do so.
i hope some doubts are clarified now as we all respect each others religion._________________go the last mile_ and enjoy it!

"p.s. Cp i just want to clarify that muslims donot scoff at jesus's virgin birth. infact we respect this fact because our god has asked us to do so."

Thank you for the correction, Zeh88. I am not an expert on religion and am always glad to learn something new.

I guess I was using "virgin birth" as a shorthand for the notion that Jesus is the literal son of God and thus the Messiah, something that Muslims do not believe.

I searched the Koran for any mention of Jesus, and I found none. But for Messiah, I found these passages:

[5.17] Certainly they disbelieve who say: Surely, Allah-- He is the Messiah, son of Marium. Say: Who then could control anything as against Allah when He wished to destroy the Messiah son of Marium and his mother and all those on the earth? And Allah's is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and what is between them; He creates what He pleases; and Allah has power over all things,

[5.72] Certainly they disbelieve who say: Surely Allah, He is the Messiah, son of Marium; and the Messiah said: O Children of Israel! serve Allah, my Lord and your Lord. Surely whoever associates (others) with Allah, then Allah has forbidden to him the garden, and his abode is the fire; and there shall be no helpers for the unjust.

[5.75] The Messiah, son of Marium is but an apostle; apostles before him have indeed passed away; and his mother was a truthful woman; they both used to eat food. See how We make the communications clear to them, then behold, how they are turned away.

[9.30] And the Jews say: Uzair is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!

[9.31] They have taken their doctors of law and their monks for lords besides Allah, and (also) the Messiah son of Marium and they were enjoined that they should serve one God only, there is no god but He; far from His glory be what they set up (with Him)._________________You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

hi Cp, its really glad to see that you did your study of Koran and yes it does say that jesus was not a son of god. you were right on this point but not the virgin birth of jesus. maybe i misinterpreted the meaning of virgin birth as you were using it.
regards_________________go the last mile_ and enjoy it!

This is in answer to CP. People (including muslims) buy shares to earn profit from it.How then is it legal while interests are not? I don't get it.Sorry.Your mullas are issuing fatwas for the sake of it.Just because thay can, they will_________________The difference between insanity and genius is measured by success

however shares are not unlawful in islam unless it takes the shape of interest in someway or the other. example..if you buy a share and intentionally wait for the prices to rise in stockexchange then it is pretty much like interest because you would be getting money more than you actually invested.

Sorry, I don't understand what you're saying... Isn't that "investment" is all about? You put in money to invest in a company so the company can do more business and make more money. When the company makes profit, its share prices will go up and it pays back the investor the divident(interest).

I don't see how anyone would invest if they're not getting more money than the original investment... or make an investment if they expect the share prices to remain the same or even fall... (Enron and Worldcom would love those investors)